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Holuhraun Called Holuhraun

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Holuhraun Called Holuhraun

The local council in Skútustaðahreppur has voted to name the Holuhraun volcano Holuhraun.

The eruption at Holuhraun, which started last year and has now come to a complete stop, has been called Holuhraun in conversation and in writing since it first started erupting—but only now has the local municipality made a decision on what the volcano will officially be called.

Local councilor Yngvi Ragnar Kristjánsson made the announcement to the nation in a radio interview, Vísir reports.

The council had four proposed names for the site, which were: Flæðahraun, Holuhraun, Nornahraun and Urðarbruni.

In the final decision, two councilors voted for the name Holuhraun, one councilor voted for Nornahraun and one voted for Urðarbruni. The fifth council member left the meeting and did not vote.

The Northeast Iceland Skútustaðahreppur municipality is a massive 6,035 square kilometers in size, but has a population of just 371 people.

It might sound vaguely silly for a committee to officially name geographic features which clearly already have a name—but in Iceland the land is in constant flux and it is important for brand new features to have officially recognized names. In this case, it is fortunate that the new official name is the same as the old unofficial one.

The council has yet to choose names for the calderas and other new natural features which were created during the eruption.